Summary: The Gay Marriage Act

The Supreme Court’s decision finalized the questions of whether states have the right to pass laws treating marriages differently based upon sex, and if states have to acknowledge the marriage of same-sex couples who were married in another state. On a 5-4 decision, the Court determined that the Fourteenth Amendment requires states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because they cannot be treated differently than opposite sex couples. The court also determined that states have to recognize same-sex marriages the same way they do with opposite-sex. However, the Supreme Court did not create a law about same sex marriage, it just stated that

In 1996, President Bill Clinton signs the Defense of Marriage Act. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) allows for all the states to deny same-sex couples the same rights as their counterparts. It also gives a formal definition to marriage as the union between a man and a woman (Same Sex Marriage, 2017). The bill does violate the Establishment clause in the First Amendment as the government fails to separate church and state. The document does allude to the book of Genesis when it defines marriage as the union between a man and a woman (Text-HR, 2017). However, most of the nation did not approve of same-sex marriages as the time so the President chose to sign the bill that would later be revoked because of court case Obergefell vs Hodges (Same Sex Marriage, 2017).

The year 1970, When two men tried to get married the university denied them because they were the same-sex. It was illegal to have same-sex sex at around 1969 which is unfair to all same-sex couples. All the gay people wanted was to be treated fairly, just as the straights do. And with complete honesty they didn’t want marriage specifically, they just wanted the rights. On June 26, 2015, the U.S supreme court ruled, that gay marriage is a right protected by the U.S constitution in all 50 states. On May 18, 1970, two university men applied for a marriage license, but they were denied because they were the same-sex. On June 26,2003, they banned people for being gay (same-sex) adults, They made it illegal. On July 1989, Court

On June 26,2015, the Supreme Court sided that gay marriage is a right protected by the U.S. Constitution in all 50 states. Previously, to their decision, same sex marriage was already legal in 37 states and

The court had taken away the power that was rightfully the states and required them to legalize gay marriage. Many states did not follow this law. A lot of county clerks either quit or stated that they would not issue the gay-marriage licenses. Some county officers even stopped issuing marriage licenses all together. A couple of judges dropped their licenses, and a United States senator told people to ignore the law. Many did not believe that these five individuals had the right to pass this law, and they were

The argument brought before the Supreme Court was to eliminate the ban on same sex marriage that was still held by thirteen states. This was done as part of a lawsuit called Obergefell versus Hodges. Court documents outline that, “14 same-sex couples and two men whose same-sex partners are deceased, filed suits in Federal District Courts in their home States, claiming that respondent state officials violate the Fourteenth Amendment by denying them the right to marry or to have marriages lawfully performed in another State given full recognition.” (United States Court of Appeals)

The ruling led to federal actions and actions by several states, to restrict marriage to male-female couples, in particular the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

Throughout the years, society has slowly started to embrace gay culture and has begun to accept same-sex marriage in a positive way. It started with the late 1800s and early 1900s where same-sex marriage or gay culture was frowned upon. It then led on to the late 1900s where people began to accept it and fight for those who were treated unreasonably. Later on, it led to the 2000s where majority of the population supported same-sex marriage along with the fact that it was officially legalized in Canada. Views on same-sex marriage have altered in such a drastic way from decades ago to now, but it has definitely changed in an extremely positive manner.

On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme court ruled gay marriage as a constitutional right in all 50 states. This was a tremendous achievement for the LGBT community, it was the beginning of acceptance. Even though the Supreme Court passed this ruling

Marriage between homosexual couples is just as normal as any other marriage. They may share a home, raise children, have careers, and go on vacation just like any other family might do. Two men being married is not harmful to society and it does not affect the lives of those surrounding them. People can

Most notable, the enactment of the Defense of Marriage Act (commonly referred to as DOMA) in 1996. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is a federal statute that explicitly defines marriage as the legal union between one man and one woman. Signed in 1996 by then President Bill Clinton, this law has been deemed highly controversial for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, this law dictates that the federal government, in not recognizing same-sex marriages, does not allow for same-sex couples to benefit from federal programs, such as Survivor benefits or Social Security, even if there is a marriage that is recognized by the couples’ home state. Secondly, DOMA defines that even if a same-sex couple is married in a state that recognizes gay marriage, other states do not have to legally have to acknowledge the relationship. This, in my opinion, is a clear violation of the Due Process Clause (14th Amendment) that prohibits state and local governments from depriving its citizens of life, liberty, or property without certain steps being taken to ensure total fairness. The Obama Administration has continuously supported the fight for DOMA to be repealed, and their efforts have already paid off in large ways. Ironically, President Clinton, who was initially responsible for signing DOMA into law, has since publicly apologized for the law, saying that, “When I signed the bill, I included a statement with the admonition that "enactment of this legislation should not, despite the fierce and at times divisive rhetoric surrounding it, be understood to provide an excuse for discrimination." Reading those words today, I know now that, even worse than providing an excuse for discrimination, the law is itself discriminatory. It should be

Gay marriage has been one of the most common topic under discussion, arguments and quarrels since couple of years in almost every nation of the world. Looking deep down to the region of United States, same-sex marriage or gay marriage has not been legalized and documented in most of its jurisdictions. However, it is prudent to note that with the beginning of the twenty first century, only a few of US states have legally recognized the gay marriage through court verdicts and legislative proceedings and have lawfully allowed the gay people to get into a relationship (Wolfson 2004).

Historically when you looked up the definition of marriage in the dictionary, it defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman. According to cbn.com, Merriam-Webster changed its definition of marriage in 2003. The revised version now defines marriage as the state of being married as spouses in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law. Currently, in 2017 more sources have also made revisions to redefine marriage. They are now defining marriage as being between two people instead of being between just a man and a woman. For decades, same-sex couples have been deprived of the same rights that opposite couples have always had. The case of Obergefell v Hodges made a huge impact in the U.S. and have changed the

The current major state and federal law that is affecting same-sex marriage is the Defense of Marriage Act , or DOMA as it also called. The Defense of Marriage Act is a federal law that allows each state to recognize or deny any marriage-like relationship between persons of the same-sex that has been recognized in another state and it also explicitly recognizes for purposes of federal law that marriage is "a legal union of one man and one woman as husband and wife" and by stating that spouse "refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or wife." When asking the people that I interviewed what their feelings were towards the Defense of Marriage Act and how it currently affects the issue of same-sex marriage and the interviewees who were for same-sex marriage felt that the law was inherently wrong and the person I interviewed who was opposed to same-sex marriage thought the law was good except for one obvious flaw with it.

Same sex- marriage is still the topic of many peoples conversation across the country. Citizens, divided by politic party, are very passionate about how they feel about it. The president didn’t approve of it at first, but now he finally accepts same- sex marriage, the Judicial System uses its power to dictate to the States, forcing them to accept same- sex marriage. Both houses of Congress continue to debate what marriage means.